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The wood-feeding cockroach genus Cryptocercus is a subsocial and sister group of the eusocial cockroaches, i.e., termites. Although Cryptocercus is a key taxon for understanding the evolution of eusociality in the Blattodea (cockroaches and termites), few genetic resources are available for comparative genetic analyses. In this study, we conducted transcriptome sequencing of Cryptocercus punctulatus...

One of the defining features of the evolutionary success of insects is the morphological diversification of their appendages, especially mouthparts. Although most insects share a common mouthpart ground plan, there is remarkable diversity in the relative size and shapes of these appendages among different insect lineages. One of the most prominent examples of mouthpart modification can be found in...

How individual organisms whose behavior is potentially driven by selfish interests cooperate to form a society is a central question in evolutionary biology. Worker reproduction and its suppression in eusocial insects provide an illuminating model of such a conflict resolution. Although many theoretical and empirical studies focus on the nature and evolutionary consequences of this reproductive conflict,...

A preparation protocol is proposed for a reliable aptamer array utilizing an ink-jet spotter. We accumulated streptavidin and biotinylated-aptamer in this order on a biotinylated-polyethylene glycol-coated gold substrate to prepare an aptamer array. The aptamer array was prepared with an alternate spotting structure where each aptamer spot was placed between reference spots formed with blocking solution...

In termites, the soldier caste, with its specialized defensive morphology, is one of the most important characteristics for sociality. Most of the basal termite species have both male and female soldiers, and the soldier sex ratio is almost equal or only slightly biased. However, in the apical lineages (especially family Termitidae), there are many species that have soldiers with strongly biased sex...

The origins of evolutionary novelties are often deeply puzzling. They are generally associated with new functions that were absent in ancestors. The new functional configuration should arise via intermediate stages without any loss of function or impediment to the whole organism during the transitions. Therefore, understanding of the functional configurations of transitional states can shed light...

Termite caste differentiation is a multifaceted process that is under the control of a range of intrinsic and extrinsic factors, and it has challenged researchers for decades. Advances in molecular, genomic, and integrative or “systems” biology in the past decade have greatly facilitated efforts to begin to understand this process. Using molecular tools, it is now possible to investigate caste differentiation...

Background Genes in the sex determination pathway are important regulators of sexually dimorphic animal traits, including the elaborate and exaggerated male ornaments and weapons of sexual selection. In this study, we identified and functionally analyzed members of the sex determination gene family in the golden metallic stag beetle Cyclommatus metallifer, which exhibits extreme differences in mandible...

Background: Insects exhibit a diversity of environmentally sensitive phenotypes that allow them to be an extraordinarily successful group. For example, mandible size in male stag beetles is exquisitely sensitive to the larval nutritional environment and is a reliable signal of male condition. Results: To date, studies of how such phenotypically plastic traits develop have focused on two types of mechanistic...

Predator‐ and prey‐induced phenotypic plasticity is widely observed among amphibian species. Although ecological factors inducing diverse phenotypic responses have been extensively characterized, we know little about the molecular bases of variation in phenotypic plasticity. Larvae of the Hokkaido salamander, Hynobius retardatus, exhibit two distinct morphs: the presence of their prey, Rana pirica...

Phenotypic plasticity is considered an important factor leading to phenotypic evolution through adaptations to changing environments. Interactions between environmental inputs and expressed phenotypes can be evaluated as “reaction norms”. Comparisons of these reaction norms among geographically distinct populations may provide evidence for genetic diversity and, moreover, important clues into understanding...

In termites, the soldier caste possesses morphological features suitable for colony defence, despite some exceptions. Soldiers are differentiated via two moultings through a presoldier stage with dramatic morphogenesis. While a number of morphological modifications are known to occur during the presoldier moult, growth and morphogenesis seem to continue even after the moult. The present study, using...

Influenza virus is a global health concern due to its unpredictable pandemic potential. Frequent mutations of surface molecules, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA), contribute to low efficacy of the annual flu vaccine and therapeutic resistance to standard antiviral agents. The populations at high risk of influenza virus infection, such as the elderly and infants, generally mount low immune...

In Daphnia pulex, juveniles form “neckteeth” a defensive structure on their heads, in response to predatory kairomones released by Chaoborus larvae. This phenomenon provides a model experimental system for the study of developmental mechanisms and evolutionary processes in predator‐induced polyphenisms. Although it is thought that kairomone signals are sensed and converted into physiological signals...

Wing polyphenism in aphids represents an outstanding example of adaptive phenotypic plasticity. During summer, parthenogenic mother aphids alter the developmental fate of their embryos to produce wingless or winged adult forms in response to high population density (i.e. crowded conditions). Although this maternal effect is well known, the mechanisms underlying transgenerational winged‐morph determination...

Most aphids exhibit wing polyphenism, in which winged and wingless females are produced depending on aphid densities. Although juvenile hormone (JH) has been implicated in the regulation of aphid wing polyphenism, relatively few studies examining the direct relationship between JH titer and resultant wing morphs have been undertaken. We therefore investigated the relationship between JH III titer...

Termite societies are characterized by a highly organized division of labor among conspicuous castes, groups of individuals with various morphological specializations. Termite caste differentiation is under control of juvenile hormone (JH), but the molecular mechanism underlying the response to JH and early events triggering caste differentiation are still poorly understood. In order to profile candidate...

Background In many insect taxa, wing polymorphism is known to be a consequence of tradeoffs between flight and other life-history traits. The pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum exhibits various morphs with or without wings associated with their complex life cycle including wing polyphenism in viviparous females, genetic wing polymorphism in males, and a monomorphic wingless phenotype in oviparous females...

Numerous coleopteran species express male‐specific “weapon traits” that often show size variations among males, even within a single population. Many empirical studies have demonstrated that environmental conditions during development affect absolute weapon size. However, relatively few studies in horned beetles support the hypothesis that the relationship between weapon size and body size, also referred...

We developed a patterned cellulose membrane for surface plasmon resonance (SPR) measurement that works as a capillary force inducing material to provide liquid flow and as a support for antibody immobilization. The patterned cellulose membrane was directly prepared on a gold film/glass substrate by using an approach based on the phase separation method. We optimized the preparation conditions to produce...

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